Barcelona president Joan Laporta has addressed comparisons being made between Lamine Yamal and Lionel Messi, calling the fledgling teenager the “best in the world”.
Laporta’s comments come following the Spanish champions’ 7-3 win over Seoul FC as part of the club’s pre-season tour of Asia, in which Yamal fired home two first-half goals as Hansi Flick’s side put on a spectacle in the South Korean capital.
New contract, new shirt number
Despite celebrating his 18th birthday just last month, comparisons are already being made between the young prodigy and Messi, the club’s record goalscorer.
In May, Yamal signed a new long-term contract with the LaLiga side, keeping him at the club until 2031 with a reported €1bn euros (£840m) release clause.
The new deal also saw Yamal handed the iconic No.10 shirt for the coming season: the number worn for more than a decade by Messi, who departed the club in 2021 after winning ten LaLiga titles and four Champions League trophies.
Laporta hails teenager “best in the world”
This year could see Yamal become the youngest-ever Ballon d’Or winner after helping Barcelona claim a domestic treble last term, scoring 18 goals and registering 21 assists across all competitions.
And while Laporta highlighted the talents of the teenage star, he was quick to put any comparisons with the Argentina captain in context.
“Lamine is Lamine Yamal and Lionel Messi was Lionel Messi,” Laporta told CNN.
“Messi has been the best player in the world, and Lamine, I think in the current moment, is the best in the world. But, we will have to see,”
“Lamine has a lot of personality, just like Messi did in his early days. Of course, Messi won everything. For me, he’s probably the greatest player of all time.
“He’s the kind of player of which there are very few, because he’s a genius and performing at the highest level.”
“The world goes on and new geniuses emerge, and the new geniuses today are players like Lamine Yamal, Pedri and Raphinha, all very talented players in the world of football.”
